Vatican Reasserts ‘No Grounds’ for ‘Homosexual Unions’

The Vatican has reasserted its long-held opposition to same-sex marriage, as well as the adoption of children by gay couples.

But the new document, Instrumentum Laboris — the result of Pope Francis’ call for bishops around the world to discuss family issues — also says discrimination against gay couples should be avoided and that their children must be cared for without bias, the Christian Post reports.

“On unions of persons of the same sex, the responses of the bishops’ conferences refer to Church teaching. ‘There are absolutely no grounds for considering homosexual unions to be in any way similar or even remotely analogous to God’s plan for marriage and family.” the document, released last week, maintains.

[…] Nonetheless, according to the teaching of the Church, men and women with homosexual tendencies ‘must be accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided’.”CNS reported Thursday the document also reports the findings of a Vatican survey sent to bishops around the world late last year in advance of a Vatican assembly on the family in October.